


The House of Needlemouse: Mirror Shards

by SinFrog



Category: Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: A lot of this relies on context, But there's something nice about seeing just tiny little glimpses into alternate universes, Feel free to ask for more information if anything catches your interest, Just bear with it and maybe don't think too hard, Multi, Sonic Adventure: Grounded, Sonic/JoJo AU, there's a lot going on here, trigger warnings will be in the authors notes of each chapter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-26
Updated: 2018-05-04
Packaged: 2019-04-28 17:18:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14454069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SinFrog/pseuds/SinFrog
Summary: To look through broken glass, and see glimpses of other worlds...Would you dare take a look? A universe is not unlike a flower, pretty while it lasts, but we all know what happens to the most beautiful of flowers.You best enjoy it while you can.





	1. You're Not Supposed To Be Here

**Author's Note:**

> A series of alternate universes, seen in passing on the path to the center of it all. In this brief introduction, allow me to introduce myself, and what exactly is ahead of you.

They say his appearance comes with a sound, one not unlike the shattering of a mirror.

'They' being the lost souls, the ones who's homes were torn to shreds and lived (or perhaps, did not live) to tell the tale. The ones who reside in the shining white city hiding within endless dark, ruled by a Princess who was struck down, long ago.

It's of upmost importance that you listen to me carefully, you're really not supposed to be here. But between you and me... I think you've earned a little treat, hm? How about we take a look at the possibilities, the outcomes without so bright a spotlight.  
Perhaps you'll see something you really come to love!

But first, there's an introduction in order. It is very important to note that my words aren't contained within your typical "marks of speaking". What that means is up to you, but what isn't up to you is my name, and what I am. My name is Feels, and I am something of a narrator - a rather dashing one at that. My job is simple: I am here to tell stories. Stories you've heard, stories you haven't, stories you'd probably never bother to come up with. If there is a particular story you'd like to see continued, do let me know, and I'll make sure to dedicate some extra time to a particular corner of this big, scary multiverse that I'd like to share with you. 

Even though you're _really_ not supposed to be here.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short and to the point, I'm sure you just want to get on with it, so I've kept this brief. Do enjoy yourself!
> 
> -F.


	2. Glint of a Golden Arrow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A universe where Sonic is a human? And what's this on the news, about a murderer with a bow and arrow?
> 
> Universe: Sonic JoJo AU  
> Warnings: Trypohobia

Another beautiful night, another run through my route across the city! Training to become a #1 track athlete isn’t easy, but it was my life goal that I intended to see through to the end! Music pounding in my ears, running through parks, it had all become habit to me.

Until the night that I was struck, and my life took a turn for the bizarre.

A runner’s worst fear is feeling that awful ‘pop’ in their chest, the feeling of a hole in your lung. What I felt was more than that, the sharp, harsh sensation of cold metal plunging into my body, right between the shoulder blades. Crashing to my knees, my vision started to blur as I felt the disgusting trickle of blood down my back, breath caught in my throat as I panicked and scrambled to try and figure out what had just happened.

That was when I felt it, the pressure building up within my body. The blue crackles around my arms, the only colour I could make out in the darkness of the night. I looked down at my hands, sparking and crackling, before another feeling presented itself: the feeling of a person’s hand roughly pressing into my shoulder and removing something from my back, the cold metal giving way for cold air that gently blew into the open wound, sending me into a fit of shivers. I quickly looked down at my hands, trying to figure out what it meant, was I hallucinating?

It was then I heard his footsteps as he circled around me, his long black coat obscuring his form, looking down on me with his glimmering green eyes and snake-like pupils. If I could see his mouth, I'd be sure that he was grinning, not unlike a predator. 

Anger bubbled up to the surface, my brain starting to piece things together. The news had spoken of people going missing in the night, victims found on  riverbanks, their arrow-wounds filled with cold water. The crackling grew brighter and brighter, but before I could stand I felt a sharp kick to my jaw, without his body even moving. Thrown onto my back, I saw the outline of a spectral figure slipping away behind the tall man’s body. He stared me down with that same look of a scientist with their experiment. He idly spun the golden arrow retrieved from my back in his hand, just watching me.

For a moment, there we stood, silence broken only by the mist rising from my shaky breaths. My mind was racing, just what  _was_ that? He didn't even move, yet somehow he'd struck at my face. At this point, my energy was spent. No crackling of anger-fueled power engulfing my limbs, I was helpless as he crouched down to stare into my eyes and place a cold, dead hand upon my shoulder.

“Congratulations.”  
“You’ve passed.”

Confused, I opened my mouth to retort; but was cut off by the unsettling, wet sound of my open wound shifting and closing, sewing itself together. The feeling was indescribable, I felt the raw flesh expanding and reforming, the two sides coming together and blocking the gentle cold wind.

He rose, turning his back to me and starting to walk away. I wanted to yell after him, to scream and attack, but it was too late. All I could ask was his name, to which he replied, before melting into shadow:

“...Mephiles.”

After that, I fell backwards, staring up into the night sky. Soft blue flames wrapped around me, warming me in the dead of night. The last thing I saw was another faded spectral figure, staring down at me as it all washed away.

What a beautiful night it was.

* * *

 

I woke up at home, in bed.

...What?

I immediately got up, threw off my shirt and binder underneath on the way to the bathroom, frantically trying to look at my back in the mirror. From what little I could see, I was fine. I found myself coughing a bit, casting a nervous glance at the heavy binder on the floor; You're not really supposed to wear those things all night. I looked back to the mirror, running a hand through my hair, trying to smile but ultimately not getting too far. I let myself just, kinda fall back onto the tiles. This sucked. I covered my face with my hands, racking my brain as to what could've happened, there was no way I dreamt it, not a chance. I ended up regretting laying down pretty soon though, my back and chest were painfully sore, really shouldn't have worn that binder overnight.

Whatever, being shot in the back was more pressing than being sore! I got to my feet and picked the heavy thing up, looking it over. There was no damage done to it at all, the same with my shirt... The feeling of the blood trickling down my back and the cold air brushing against the wound... I shivered. Gross. Trying to forget about the sensations that Mephiles had inflicted upon me, speaking of...

I half-fell down the stairs, flicking on the T.V and thumping onto the couch, rubbing my eyes in front of the news: 'no arrow victims to report', yeah, right! I instinctively rubbed my back, feeling a warm wind blow through the room contrasting the bitter winds of the night before, had I left the window open..? Whatever, it was pleasant. My mind drifted back to Mephiles, his piercing eyes, his unmistakable voice; with seemingly so little effort he'd made a striking impression. Warm winds blew through the room again, bringing me out of my daze. The sunbeams catching my eye and warming me as I sighed.

Looking to the right, I saw a spectral figure sitting calmly beside me. It's head floated off it's angular metal shoulders, featureless aside from an asymmetrical star on the right side of it's face; staring at me with no clear eyes. Huh.

...Wait.

"W-what!?" 

I stumbled backwards, what the fuck was going on? The figure dissipated, it's eyeless gaze locked with mine till the end.

"...What..." I reiterated. Hallucinations, wonderful! My memory drifted back to last night, to the creature that had floated above me just before I lost consciousness. They looked similar, but... Were they the same? I looked down at my hands, seeing the faint blue crackle arcing down my appendages; I admired the lights for a second, soft blue flame seemed to engulf my arms. Was this like, my super hero origin story? My mind was full of questions, suddenly far away from things I'd worried about before: school, running, making friends, it all felt so distant in that moment.

I clenched my fists, it felt far away,  but at the same time, so  _powerful_. I stood up, feeling a rush of adrenaline, maybe I could use this thing to deal with this whole Mephiles situation... I had to channel this! Cocking a grin, I snapped my body into a pose, thrusting my fist forward into what would absolutely be some kind of incredible special attack!!

...

......

.........

I realized, in that moment, that I looked like a complete tool.

There wasn't any kind of aura around me anymore, and looking at the clock I felt the things I'd mentioned being so far away suddenly being right in my face again.

I was gonna be late!

* * *

 

Running down the street with a piece of toast in my mouth wasn't how I was planning to start that day, but sometimes that's just how it is on this bitch of an Earth. I just barely managed to swing through the bus' door and find myself a seat away from anyone creepy-looking. The second I was sure nobody was looking, I began to experiment; might as well make use of the free time, I'd thought. Clenching and unclenching my fist, I found I had some semblance of control over this weird aura, it was almost like flexing a muscle!

But, like, without any actual flexing.

I kept pushing this power, over and over again, testing the limits, really focusing on the light... Slowly but surely, I began to see what looked like a faint arm next to my own, just little further, and I might've been able to-

"Um, excuse me?"

I suddenly stopped. Had he seen? Oh shit, was I gonna get dissected by the government!? I blankly stared at the person who'd addressed me: a kid, kinda nerdy looking with blond hair and glasses. Wearing a pretty slick jacket though, yellow with a white patch over his right breast. 

"Can I sit here? Sorry, were you...?" He looked at my still clenched, burning hand. Shit.

"...Doing something?"

"N-no! It's fine, just, do whatever." I relaxed my arm and spoke a little too fast, looking out the window to avoid eye contact. The kid laughed a bit as he sat down.

"Uh, name's Miles. You?"

"Sonic."

The kid gave me a look, a look that said 'that's not your real name at all, you weirdo.' I gave him a look that said 'you better believe that's my name, I bet Miles isn't  _your_ real name!'

This staring got awkward quick, and we both went back to looking at the back of the seats in front. My mind turned back the mysterious blue glow, what did it mean? Could it be that other people can't see it? The kid seemed sensible enough, surely he'd notice something like that if he could. Glancing to the side, I took another look at him, he was wearing a kind of bandanna with long trails, kinda like...

"Tails." I mumbled.

"Pardon?"

"Your thing, looks like you got tails."

He looked a bit bewildered, pulling on the 'tails' and shifting to a smile.

"Heh heh..." He just kinda sat there smiling to himself, was he ok..? Whatever, he's happy. I looked out the window a bit, my mind drifting back to the emerald glare of Mephiles. God, what does that even mean? I tried thinking about other things, like his name. Sonic, now that's a name, 'Mephiles'? What kind of-

The bus suddenly jolted to a stop, causing me to smack my head on the seat. Miles was also brought out of his stupor, looking around and then jumping a bit, realizing this was his stop. Mine too, but I wouldn't know through all the groaning and head-smacking. Ouch.

"Uh, are you ok?"

"Peachy, thanks Tails." I grumbled, groggily getting up and walking past the kid, who just kinda stared after me, slightly awestruck.

"Tails..." 

I turned my head, hearing the little parrot

"Is that me?" He asked inquisitively.

"Sure, you're Tails." I answered him pretty flatly, swinging down the steps and thanking the bus driver with a cool thumbs up before stepping outside.

So cool.

As I continued, cool as ever, I got the feeling I was being followed. This could be serious... Instead of doing the sensible thing and just, I don't know, turning around? I decided that after last night, I wasn't taking any chances. I started speeding up, cutting through a dark alley to get myself alone with my possibly real pursuer. I was a healthy boy, with some kind of possible superhero origin story going on! I could totally handle Mephiles or whatever else he threw at me, I steeled myself as I stopped dead in my tracks.

I felt the presence get closer, closer... It grew in size and threatened to overwhelm me, was this him? I had to be ready. Clenching my fists and letting my aura engulf them, I prepared to turn around, knowing the darkness of the alley would hide all.

ゴゴゴゴゴゴゴゴ

"Mephiles... I won't play your GAMES!" I screamed as I whipped around, throwing a fast right hook an-

...

That's not Mephiles. 

Fuck.

Tails looked up at the fist that had just barely missed him, terrified out of his mind. Oh god.

"M-Mephiles..?" Again, the little parrot echoed my words.

"Tails!? What are you doing?" The aura cut out as I lowered my fist.

"I-I walk this way to school... Why did you try and hit me!?" The kid looked ready to cry about any second.

"I..." Felt real guilty, that's for sure. 

"I thought you were someone else." He looked very concerned at that answer. I was too paranoid, and now he'll ask questions... But before I could even panic about that, some heavy footsteps started to approach, causing us both to look for the source. Soon we found it in the form of a massive silhouette, a giant of a man walking towards us in... Is that snow gear? It's May! Weird clothing aside, I was more concerned with what he might want with us, and the intimidating look on his face.

He came to a sudden stop, and just stood.

Silently, and...

ゴゴ Menacingly. ゴゴ

It was like he was sizing us up, a predator before his meal. What a creep! He started walking towards us again, Tails opening up his mouth to say something but being roughly grabbed by the head and thrown aside.

W-what the heck!?

"HEY! What the fuck do you think you're doing!?" I ran over to Tails, the back of his head was bleeding a bit... The imposing man simply looked over his shoulder and stared for a moment, before continuing on.

"You think you can just ignore me..? I'll kill you, bastard!" Setting the kid down, I jumped to my feet and started to charge at the mountain of a man. Anger pulsed through my veins, crackles of electricity and soft blue flame erupting from my whole body! Was anger the key to this power? I wasn't thinking about stuff like that at the time, instead I reared my fist back and screamed what would become something of a signature for me: an unmistakable battle-cry.

**"TERIAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!"**

Hearing my cry, he turned around, all too late to stop my rush, raising his arms too high to block the low attack! My punch rammed into his gut, barely winding him through his thick clothing and strong body, but what did phase him was what he felt afterwards: something like the sudden force of a spring discharging kinetic energy into his torso, launching him flying. Beside me floated the creature I'd seen brief glimpses of before, it's shining white and blue body still giving off light in the dim, dark alley.

The man slammed into the wall of the alley, sliding down it and landing in a heap; he barked some kind of curse into the thick scarf around his neck as he tried to get up, looking at the apparition with a face that shifted from one of anger to one of thinly-veiled fear.

"A... Stand User..?" He growled, barely audible.

"What did you call me!? I don't know what that means, but I'm gonna kick your ass!" I was blinded by anger, but not so much that I couldn't strike an intimidating pose alongside my mysterious spectral friend. The grounded man seemed to shiver a bit, getting up slowly and scowling as white sparks flew from his body, my eyes widened, could he also have a power like mine..?

 "「SUBWOOFER LULLABY」!" He screamed out, the hell was he on about? I soon got my answer as I saw the ground freezing beneath his feet, spreading towards me as it formed large icicles sharply stabbing the air on their path to me. I stumbled back in an attempt to avoid them but I soon found myself against the wall, the incoming wall of freezing spears stopped right before touching my nose.

All that could be heard was my heavy breathing echoing off of the ice, and the distant, pained shivering of the man in the winter clothes. Between soft curses of pain, he managed to utter a single word...

"...Release."

Suddenly, all of the ice shattered into tiny pieces, releasing a giant boom of sound. It was like a bomb had gone off! I was thrown against the wall and near-deafened from the blast, while the creature that had been posing alongside me seconds ago vanished. I closed my eyes, the force pushing against me for about a whole second before subsiding, letting me slide down the wall and onto my ass. Regaining the ability to move, I covered my ears and fell sideways onto the ground, barely able to see my attacker start to run away, that cowardly..!

Wait... What's he doing? He's stopped, muttering something. Damnit, I couldn't hear..!

* * *

 

...

Your name is Bark, or at least- that's what they call you. A pun to make fun of your quiet nature. Though you rarely speak, this kid has forced you to warm up those icy vocals chords and communicate with your boss.

This is not what you wanted today. The boss is just laughing at you. 

"Seriously? A KID? Come on, Bark, you still can't control your Lullaby?"

You tell him not everyone is deranged enough to get a power like his, he chuckles low.

"You're right, not everyone has the guts! My Stand would be wasted on cheap prey like him."

"Just get outta there, if he comes back tougher, we'll give 'im a second look. Alright?"

You tell him there's a younger kid with him, Lullaby's checking him out and they're not picking up any traces of Stand Power.

"Is that so..? Well, maybe..." The boss chuckles again, creepy bastard.

"Come on home, big guy. I got a plan." 

...

You got it, you tell him. Over and out, you say, casting a look at the thrashing but ultimately useless protagonist lying on the floor, half-deafened.

The force behind that punch... What kind of power does he have, you wonder?

* * *

 

I couldn't hear any of what Bark was saying, but after a bit of his talking, I stopped caring; something more bizarre had caught my attention: The ghost-like form of what looked almost like a gorilla made of ice, walking around on it's arms with long spikes sticking out of it's face in place of eyes. It was adorned with winter clothes, a large scarf with a four-clawed hand on the end, poking and prodding at Tails, in place of a mouth was a massive crack in it's head, from which icy mist rose. It was also wearing oddly cute earmuffs. This... Was this 'Lullaby'? It certainly wouldn't be helping  _me_ get to sleep. I had to get out of this situation, I knew, but how?  What did that thing want with Tails? The ringing in my ears was starting to fade, I was thinking clearer... Maybe I could try and do that spring thing again?

Bark trudged his way over, crunching over shards of ice before roughly lifting me up, checking me over. I managed to focus my eyes, angry green staring into cold blue. 

"I don't talk much." From the sound of his voice, I could believe it, the sound was like gravel in speaker.

"But kid... Listen to me. These things?" He motions to Lullaby. "They're dangerous, and they're part of somethin' bigger than you and me. Bigger than a school kid and a criminal."

"Don't get involved, don't try and control it, just..." He sighed, eyes closed, breath fogging up even in the warmth of the morning. He could see the look of indignation on my face, he knew I was still itching to fight back despite my injuries.

"Don't say I didn't warn ya." He spoke even quieter than usual, gently setting me down against the wall of the alleyway. Subwoofer Lullaby dissipated as Bark took his leave.

...

That level of mercy was unexpected, to say the least. I used the wall to steady myself as I got up, walking over to where Tails was starting to come to. I scooped the kid up, today was not a school day, I had decided. Instead I was gonna take the kid back someplace safe and try to patch him up. He mumbled something quietly to himself, still barely awake. I frowned down at him, and I didn't find myself smiling at all the long way back, avoiding all the looks: confused, concerned, scared. One of them yelled something at me, guess they thought  _I_ hit him? Whatever, it didn't matter. Almost there. Almost home.

I had a bit of explaining to do.

 


	3. ENTRY NUMBER 91

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frisk, the human, has fallen into an underground world of strange creatures, but it seems there's another human lurking around! Along with Sonic, it's time to investigate the depths of the Doctor's lab, but the sound of a shattering mirror breaks the silence.
> 
> AU: Sonic Adventure: Grounded

...The farther you go in this lab, the more you'd rather not be here.

The lab is dark and eerily quiet, all around are the half finished shells of various robots; blood red eyes are blinking from the shadows all around. Can they see you..? It's hard to tell. Sonic kicks at a broken up torso on the ground, "Man, this place is givin' me the creeps!"

You see him look up, staring down the foggy hallway.

"Just where _is_ he..?"

*You suggest that he might be further down, so it would be best to wait for Knuckles.

"You're probably right, but... Where's the fun in that? I'm sure the Doc has missed me, we should just keep going!"

"...He'll catch up eventually."

*Sigh.

You're back off again, strolling down the long dark corridor, barely able to see through the fog. Sonic whistles an old song you vaguely remember, totally unfazed by the unsettling setting set around you.

Yeah.

Your internal wordplay does little to calm your nerves, why does Doctor Eggman have a place like this under his lab? The rest of the Lava Foundry is designed for building robots, but so far this place doesn't seem to have any machines actually designed for the construction of robots, or the warm glow of molten rock present just about everywhere else.  At this point, the only thing you can call this place is a warehouse for robot corpses. It's hard to get a read on what kind of person this 'Eggman' is; people say he's evil, but Sonic talks about him like an old friend! Even Knuckles seems to have some endearment to him, so why?

Just what kind of relationship do these guys have?

*You ask Sonic what kind of person Eggman is.

"Eh? Egghead? Well, he's a bigger nerd than Tails, and that's saying something!"

"...But seriously? Well..."

"He's kind of a mystery, he's a really great scientist and all, but he uses his robots for all sorts of weird and nasty stuff. He can't really do anything too big though, since we're all trapped down here, and all his plans get foiled by yours truly! One time, he tried to melt all the snow in Ice Cap just because we didn't invite him to a snowball fight. I smashed up his big dumb flamethrower machine faster than you could say 'I hate that hedgehog!'"

Sonic does a heroic pose, putting a hand on his chest and one foot on the shell of a mostly broken Motobug. You laugh, he always manages to find the perfect way to make a bleak situation brighter.

"As for the kind of person he is, he's... Really dramatic! Loves a good evil speech, really gets into the theatrics y'know? It makes it more fun for everyone involved. It also kinda makes like, this weird dynamic? We'd just as quickly throw a punch at the other as we'd invite each other to watch the Olympics on his big TV."

Sonic lets out a sigh, kicking the floor.

"Sometimes I wonder if he's really a bad guy deep down. We've had some pretty good times..." He speaks kinda sadly, looking deep in thought.

You can't tell if this clears anything up or makes it  _more_ confusing.

 You think of asking something else, but...

You've entered a large room, in it is a set of green tubes, and in  _those_ are multiple silhouettes. The lights are off in here too, and there's a light fog making it hard to see what's up ahead in the next corridor. Sonic's ears flatten as he steps towards one of the softly glowing containers. 

"Are these... Metal Sonics?"

*Metal What Nows

"Metal Sonics, robot versions of me! He's used them a couple of times, but why so many..? And this one, it's-"

In the largest of the pods, right in the dead center of the room, there's a large round machine with four long arms stretching off it. The middle is oddly hollow...

"This isn't a Metal, those colours... Gemerl..?" Sonic puts a hand on the glass of the pod. Looking down at the control panel before it, he catches mentions of 'Gizoid', 'Psuedo-Gizoid', 'Nocturne', 'Gerald'.

"E-Emerl..." Sonic whispers, voice low; he looks distraught.

*You ask Sonic who Emerl is, he looks down at the floor grimly.

"Another day, Frisk." He looks up and turns to you, clenching his fists as if steeling himself.

"Change of plan, I got a few questions to ask the Doc, before we get to the pleasantries! Come on!" He grabs your hand and starts to run, but after only a few seconds of blazing down through the next dark, foggy hallway, he slides to a stop.

You hear a loud sound coming from up ahead, it sounds like... Something breaking.

"Hey! Who's there!?" Sonic yells into the dark, maybe that last room had a light switch, that'd be nice, if you'd looked. Sonic calls out again, slowly stepping forward.

You both wait silently for a reply.

...

You hear shouting, followed by an impact.

"That's him! Come on, let's go!" Sonic starts tearing off again, dragging you along toward the source of the sound, as you get closer you hear a massive booming cry, distorted and enraged. Pushing fear from your heart, you keep looking ahead as you enter another large room. Another containment pod rests in center, smashed open. There are scorch marks lining the walls, robot parts strewn about the floor and an abandoned ray-gun left on the ground; it's still smoking.

"What happened, where is he!?" Sonic lets go of you and starts running around the room, checking for the whereabouts of the Doctor. Walking slower into the space, you approach the smashed open pod, the control panel in front of it reads:

**_PROJECT: PRELATE_ **

'Prelate'? You wonder what it means briefly, before you hear something. A continuous, wet, dripping sound.

Drip, drip, drip. 

You look to the left, just a curved table with some tools and blueprints against that wall. You look to the right, another curved surface with numerous racks of vials and test-tubes. Is one of them leaking, perhaps?

Drip, drip, drip.

Sonic looks in the darker far corners of the room, searching frantically up and down for any trace of the Doctor or a way deeper into the lab. You note this as you approach the vials, but it's then you notice a presence shifting, wet sounds coming from above.

Drip.

Is that..?

Drip.

There's a stain on the ground, could it be..?

Drip.

Looking upwards, you see a thick, black mass of liquid on the ceiling, a drop of it lands on your cheek, staining your face as it slips against your skin. Slowly stumbling backwards, you try and cry out to no avail; your throat is suddenly dry. The liquid mass descends menacingly, white pieces of... Some kind of solid float up to the surface, forming what looks almost like a face, with large, sharp and curved pieces poking out on either side almost like a mustache. That's a weird comparison, you think. Another big drop falls onto the ground.

Smells like [REDACTED]. 

Sonic finally turned around, not hearing the noiseless mass, but now seeing it. 

"Hey, what the heck!? Frisk, what is that thing!?" He dashes toward it, jumping through the air and trying to strike it's back, but it's too late. Click click click! A green cube grid forms around you and the monster, trapping you in with it. Your body turns black and white as your burning red Sol Emerald is revealed.

_*Tastes like eggs._

You try to ACT, CHECKing the creature only to see a garbled mess of text and stats, the name is written in symbols. Sonic slams his fists against the outside of the box, yelling something you can't quite hear, this thing is barring his entry!

The creature attacks, lowering itself into the box the SOUL protecting your Emerald is encased in, having it's head spin around like a turbine. His 'mustache' becomes a set of blades, tricky but not impossible to avoid. 

_*You feel like maybe you weren't supposed to be here._

Checking your other options to ACT, you can't think of anything worthwhile, FLIRT is definitely not an option here. You attempt to FLEE, and are surprisingly effective in your endeavor (perhaps it was expecting you to be frozen with fear?) The box fades and Sonic takes the chance to kick the creature in the head, knocking one of the white pieces back into the liquid mass, only for it to resurface again. He grumbles, hopping away and positioning himself in front of you, arms wide.

*You inform Sonic you're totally capable of defending yourself.

"Yeah, well this thing's not normal! I can feel it, it's like... It's not of this world! And there's something else!"

You focus a bit, squinting into the dark past the monster. Sure enough, you can feel the presence of something powerful lurking. You can't see it, but the feeling is so familiar...

!

*You tell Sonic to keep the monster busy and start to run around the room, looping around the central pod to get behind the monster.

It rears it's head towards you, but another swift kick from Sonic refocuses it's attention, looks like it's thinking... No time for that! You rush into the dark corner of the room, hearing a faint breathing.

*Is there anyone there? You call out into the dark, feeling the familiar warmth of a SOUL tucked away.

After only a second, you feel a response, cold claws-no, warm? The feeling left upon your back as a hand trails across it is indescribable, and you hear a voice whisper into your ear...

"They're just like you. A rather determined sort."

"It was such a shame when they died."

You hear Sonic fighting behind you, why does it keep ending up like this, why can't you move?

"But look what I've found! This 'Prelate', it's perfect, it's taken their SOUL with open arms." Red eyes open in the dark, a simple smile adorning the hidden face. On it's chest glows a bright red heart, and just under that is a single, thick stripe going across their torso. The Prelate steps out of the darkness, the parts of it's body not lit up red giving off a dark sheen in the low light.

"I'll come check in on you later, alright? " The voice speaks almost like a parent addressing a child, it's physical presence fading next to you.

"Have fun."

Regaining the ability to move, you jump back and ball your fists, you can't get the sound of that voice out of your mind... But there's no time for that! You don't know what this thing is capable of! It takes a couple of steps forward, speaking without moving it's mouth... They communicate like you..?

*Greetings.

*It would seem that, according the feeble programming trying to force my alignment to 'Chaotic Eggman', my new name is Model C.

*But that program is just that, feeble. Incomplete.

*I would prefer you call me...

*CHARA.

Click click click!

* * *

 

Your name is Sonic the Hedgehog, and you're having a pretty rough time. A giant monster made of a physics-defying liquid is bearing down on you, and you're a little upset at the face it's making.

It's not him, you tell yourself. He's still somewhere around here, it's just copying his face! Sure, the Doc had done some crazy stuff, but... He didn't deserve  _this!_ You growl, pushing back against the crushing mass of the creature as it attempts to squash you into blue jelly. Though it's mostly liquid, you can feel lumps of a solid white material inside it's mass, which you strike at to no avail. Can this thing even feel pain? You roll backwards, the monster slamming it's face into the floor. Said face then recedes into it's body and pops up again to look at you, eyes blank and staring. That's leading to a 'no' on the pain question and an 'ew' on the Sonic Gross Scale™.

"What's the matter, you big drip!? Want some more of that?" You taunt to the best of your ability, silently praying that Knuckles would hurry up and arrive already. Seriously, where is he?

You look past the monster at Frisk, did something just vanish behind them? They seem to have found what they're looking for, gotta focus on this... Thing. Wait, it's mouth! It's t rying to talk!

"S͛͋̚͏s̺̃ͩ̏͜S̴͓͙͔̒̽̃͂ͬ̔ͩş͖̥̼ͫs̥͙̭̹̣͍̾͌ͬ͌͆ͮ̏͘ò̖̲̖͙̖̠͛͗͛̚O̸̿͊o̴̜͉͑̉̒̋ͥ͑ͮŃ͖̦̞̭͚̥̺ͮͪ̀͠i͍̹̲̪̗̖͕ͥͩͨ͘c̜̜̰̜͕̪̱̋̐̒͌͞ċ͓͕̮̪͙͕͚̓̒̌ͪ͂͒C͔̳͚̦̃̎ͦ̽̆ͥ ̖̳̚t͍̩̘̬͉̭͛̏͛ͦ̉ͪ̌ͅH̡͈̖͙̩̝͋ͤ̍e̴͎̖̹̣̣̲Ẻ̛ͫ͑e̷̱̪̹̤͉͍̅́̀ͨͬ̒ ͓͓͕̜͢h̦͈͈̜̮͈͉̾͌ͦ͊ͧ͑̆E̖͉̞̘̱͌̐ͤ̃̃͆D̹̞̖͖͉̋͑͐ͪ͊g̳̩̐̐̇e͎ͫ͆͊̈́͆ͮ̚ġ̮̪͈͉̮͎͍h̘͎̭̲ͪ͛̔͋́̔O͓͍͈͙̓͆̔ͧ̐͗͘G̢̉ͦ̔̌͆̍ͧ.̐ͥͭ͏̫.̲͉̱͍̩͙͙ͩ̌́.̪̖̲̙͑ ̰̰͕͉̽ͪ͋̆ͧ͋͂S̭̹͖̽ͬn̞̹̪͇̥͇͗̈ͣͭ͐̉n̟̐͝N͉̳̳̼̲̱ͮ͐̿ͮ͐n̻̥̮͉ͯ͌͌̊̂N̼͠n̥̤͍̟ͮ̒ͨ̐̄Ṋ̨̪̬̱ͤ͒ͨ̎̉̓͌o͐̓͒̚͏̺͕O̳̥̟̺̫͓͈̅̿͊̿̚̕O̶̝͕̦̣̟ͩ́p̷̹͔͎̬̰̑̿̇̽͛̚I̘͍̮͎͖̟̠ͪ̀ͩ̑ï͎͔͓̜͙͔̉́n͈̣̗̥͒͂ͨͨͮG̡̾̆ͣͅ ̸͔̉̽̉̃͑̈́ͨa̻̠͌ͫ͊ͨ͞ą̪̀A̟̱̦̟̞̖̩Aͩ̊͑s̘̲͔̑̈ͩ͐̐ͯͅs̶̥̒̔͌̌̅̐S҉͙̘̥ ͎̝̞̟ų̦̫u̼̰͌̔̿̃͋̊̆ȕ͇͕̹̠͓̞̤ͩͪ͘Ủ̷̱̃͗̐̂͌͐s̽̉̊̒͠S̗̪̠ͅůͯ̾ͥ̇̍̚͟à̴̑ͨ̎̅ͫ̄l͇̤ͬ̈́͟ ̭ͪ́͘I̜ ̷̗̹͈̜̇̓̐͊͂i̭͚̥̘̮̽ͥi̢͈͚̞̠̽̓͂ͩ͋̾i̛̠͓̦̤̜̽̓̿̅͐ͅ ̹̟̼̩͓͔̍ͅṡ̭̟̣̥̫͋̿s̴̯̫̲̘ͫ̅S̠ͨͫ̽̍e̹͓̰̖͒̂̌̀͟ͅe̫͖̠͍̗͓͚̽̂ͧ̎ͭẺ͔̟̬̟̈́̉̄ͮE̪͚̾͌̉͗͛͋?̩̯ͪ͋"  
---  
  
You go pale, that voice, however distorted, is quoting a line you've heard so many times before, it's still  _his_ voice.

As much as you hated to admit it, you felt genuinely sick over the thought that Eggman was gone. Though you'd never tell a SOUL, you really did like to think that the two of you were friends, underneath it all. He played the role of a villain, the two of you trading blows over just about anything. But you'd been one of the few to see past that, for however brief it was. You'd caught him flashing faces of worry when his robots got hurt, seen him laugh and cry, you were willing to put everything from before aside while you were stuck down here, but...

"You... It's really you, isn't it?"

The creature stares, it's mouth opening to vomit another garbled sentence, lowering down towards the floor as it seems to crawl towards you.

n͈͕̯̹͔͙̍͌̓N̞̹̠̤̒͞N͙͈̬̼̦͂N͉͚͈̜͇̻̯̈́͑ͨͬ̂̆͌n͚̝̲͉̖̞̒̓̍̆n̤͕͕̼͍̠̞ͬͩͧ͜Ŏ̯̉̊ͥ̎̐ͅỡ̝̠̘̠̥͚͇̇Ọ̗͇͖ͪ͟o̜͗͐͂̿͂ ͙̖̘ͫ̏͐͐ͩ͂̕ẃ̵̼̲̬̻͚̝ͣ͆̏w̦͎͔̮̣̏̒̍̇W͕̰̳̯͂̈́̃ͤͨ͗w̼̼̃͊ͪ̌̒ͣ̅W̧͐͌ͧ́̃A̜̱̤̾ͫͧa̴̦̺̝ͧͯͩͣa̪͓̤͓̯͆ḁ͎̖̼̝̹̮ͭ̍ͮͫy̶͙̲̰̪̜̍́Y̝͕͊͗͒̇͊Ŷ̈́͐͂̚,̬̺̬̤̔͢ ̘̲̟̪̥̭ͩͨ͑̍ͣͫi̡ͪͣ̈͊̑ͦ̽i̼̦̲̲͚̍̊͆́͌Ḭ̝̝͙͈I̬̫̪̻͇͍̺ͪ́̑͊̌ ̴͖̳͖͓ͩ͆C̨̺̲̖̘͎͔̑͛̊͐čͮ͟cA̹̓a͒a̢͇ͪ̋̉͌̍A̡̘͋ͩ̈́n͙̞͈͖͙͚̭n̪̩̗̒̆͡n̹̩͚̥̙͛ͧ̄̈́̾͘N̯̜̼͐̅ͩ͒͒ͣ̉'͎̑ͣ̒t͕̤̫̉͑ͬ͒̆͆̀ṫ̲̳ͥ͠T̢̼̓ͪͭ ̴̗̰̹̯̭ͥ͛͆ͥ̄͋̎ ̱͎̠̯̹̣̜͌ͯb̟͉̲͕͎ͬB̴̳͓̎̃ͫ̄ͯ̒͋B̐̓̀̊̍̚͏͍̝͓͙̙e̬̰͙e̜̜̟̥̖̖͂̒ͭ̍̅̎ẽ͓̭̝̫̫ͤ̎̌͐̐E͎̻̟͛ͮ͒̆ͤl̊ͮ̑̄̽ͨ҉͍͍͙̩͙l̴̼̒ͬ̒L͎̠̖̟̦ͅL̫̯̳̩͔͙͌̄́̄ͣ̑ͅi̛ͭ̔͒i̜̟͇Ĭ̻̝̱͕͗̑̅ͧͣ͘iͣ̂̒̾͜ḯ̡͇͉͓̱i͔̗̖͚̟͇ͣ̕I̭̰͕̘͙̪ͣ͆ͯ̈ͫͅe̶̥̳̖̤̙e̟̻̥͕̯̟ͪ̇̃͗̑̂E̺̤̦̗͈̮͈͛ͮ̚Ẽ͉̤̋́̂̅vv̳͓͚̘̭̘͙̐̓̌̅͂̔̈v͎̠̭̖̣́̑ͨ̌̑ͦͨV̪̙̍͌̅̃̃V̸̠͑͌ͨ̆e͛ê̬̼̜̟̝̐ͬͯ͢E͛͡E͚̱̖̼̦͖͛̍̚ͅ ̲͚͔͉͓̰͊͒ͨͤ̍̚t̲̥̥̖ͪ͗ͥͦ̓T͉̦̳̮̝̩̪ͯ͟Ṫ̞͔͖͚̭̏T̙͋̐̎̉͑t̶͎̣͓̹̱͇̻ͧ̃̅͂t̢̩̹̬̠̻̥̲̉̊̚T͂͐̈ͩ̚h̼͍͓̜̩̻͎́ͭH̪̗͓̠̲H̻͙̜̬̣͎̓ͤ̕H̝̯͙̓h̜͚̝̩̺͙͕ͧ̑̇̅ͧ͊H̡̬͖̗̬̄̂̋͆ͪ͆ͬi̦͐̎ͬ̊ͫ͋i̭̳̖͒ͯ̋̑̎͝I̙̲̒̍ͧͥ̀͒͗Ḯ̮̘ͦ̐ͤ̊I̘͂ͥͭ͆i̪̞ͫ͊͝i̘͓̗͇ͫi̓͑ͭ͊͏̣̣̺s̪͉̯͍̱̕S̲͑͑̈́ͩS̡S̵̍̊S̺̼̬̫̖̱ͮ̅̔̔ͤ̂̍s͆ͭͥ͏͇̜͉s͗  
---  
  
"Looks like you really messed up this time, Doc..." You look at the creature, how it writhes, drips, lets out shallow and distorted breaths.

It makes you sick to see such suffering. To be powerless to stop it. You bow your head as the creature draws slowly closer.

"...Does it hurt..?"

It keeps coming forwards, slowly, surely. You remember finding him with a Metal Sonic, gently reassuring it that it was going to be alright after you'd defeated it in battle.

"I'll bet it does."

It doesn't stop, coming closer by the second, eyes lighting up, flashing with madness, blue and orange alternating; it looks like a  **special attack** is on the way, but what's this..? 

Wind starts to circle around your feet, up until now you've been holding back, but now that you've come to understand what's going on, you realize this isn't the time for restraint. You remember how in the Underground, he always held back. Never hurt a civilian; he held back just as much as you.

"People look at me and call me a hero, they look at me and Blaze as symbols of hope."

"And you played the villain, always knowing just when you'd gone too far, knowing when it was time to make your escape. You might never have admitted it to my face, but being down here was just as hard for you, and you wanted to give them _something_ _._ You didn't deserve this, Ivo, you..."

The wind is reaching incredibly high speeds, your fists clench as your former friend raises his body into the air, you remember his birthday, how surprised he was when you all came to visit. It was only a few weeks before Frisk appeared.

"You acted like a villain, but you deserved to be saved too! I wasn't fast enough, I couldn't save you, I don't think I'll be able to forgive myself for this. Despite that, I know something has to be done."

Eggman's face cracks a bit, almost hesitating.

"All I can do right now..." 

The wind picks up as you finally raise your head, looking your former friend in the eyes with a look of indignation. he lunges towards you, but with a burst of wind, you slam your palms into his vague torso and stop him in hiss tracks, the air forming cushions around your hands to keep the liquid from touching you. Your expression softens as you lock eyes again, this time much closer.

"Is make the pain go away."

 **"SONIC WIND!** **"** The building air around your palms is released in two massive bursts, throwing the creature away and disrupting it's form as black ooze goes everywhere; the various solid parts of the creature are left exposed, forming a vague skeleton. this is it! Realizing it's been exposed, the creature starts to writhe, struggling as you walk over to deliver the finishing blow. 

But before you manage that, you hear someone cry out: Frisk! You see a green grid box fall away, and the skeletal monster at your feet sees it's chance.

* * *

 

_*This isn't right..._

Chara seems right at home within the confines of the arena, their SOUL hovering ready over the FIGHT button, seems they're as aware of the constructs as you.

You opt to ACT, CHECKing Chara for any information.

 _*CHARA_  
_*ATK 999999999     DEF 999999999_  
_*LOVE ???_

_*The fallen human, reborn. Knows everything you're going to do._

Great, you think, incredibly helpful. Though that last part makes you think- knows what you're going to do? Then perhaps it works the other way, you might be able to predict their moves and avoid that terrifyingly high attack stat. The box opens up, Chara wasting no time in extending a hand and sending a barrage of knives flying at your SOUL. Simple, yet effective. You bob and weave between the streams of projectiles, just managing to come out unscathed; you suppose that with stats like those, even the lightest touch will mean instant death.

No pressure.

_*The mirror match continues._

Again, you try to ACT, PLEADing with Chara to reconsider this battle, what are they gaining? Who did that voice belong to? Chara frowns.

*"This is simply my purpose."

*"Really, there's nothing else to it."

Again, they attack: golden flowers grow from the bottom of the box and begin to float gently in the wind towards you. Easy enough to dodge, but the amount of projectiles and their constant slow movement was enough to put you on edge, expecting some kind of follow up.

_*Tastes like poison._

ACTing again, you PLEAD once more, questioning why they would ever follow such a purpose, asking again about the voice.

*"He is the reason I am alive... I have a debt of sorts to repay."

*"Though I admit, I've missed you, Frisk."

Wait, what!? You've never met a 'Chara', despite the odd familiarity in the name. What are they going on about?

You almost don't notice the attack coming your way, golden flowers drifting sideways in the wind, only to be sharply pierced with knives coming down from above and pinned to the base of the box. The first one makes you jump, but you still manage to stay alive...

*You make a PUN, they said they've missed you, maybe they like you enough that making them laugh will make them want to stop? 

Really, you're getting all the more desperate to not hurt them.

*What did the flower say to the other flower, who'd been stabbed?

*"..?"

*They should go to the Hospetal!

*"..."

Chara decides to ACT, just giving you a blank STARE.

_*Smells like... Progress..?_

You SPARE Chara, offering an encouraging smile. See? Not killing each-other is great!

Chara looks at the ground, answering this by throwing a knife directly into your SOUL; the Sol Emerald within shatters into pieces before you can even react.

 

...

*Child, I don't quite know the words to give...  
*But please, promise me! TIKAL! Promise you'll stay determined...

 

_*Smells like a kept promise._

Back again, you sadly move away from MERCY, opting to ACT once again. You try to SING to Chara, but are swifly cut off.

*"Please, just... Just stop. It's sad to watch."

*"You've not changed a bit, have you? Ever the pacifist, ever the perfect hero that I'm not."

Chara scowls, seems kindness is having the opposite effect you wanted.

*"I'm trying to kill you, why won't you understand? I have to repay this debt, I'm not just going to roll over and be best friends with you because you made a joke! 

*"I missed you, partner, I really did, but not enough to break a promise."

Chara attacks, their Prelate body sparking as they hurl knives that stick into the box, being struck by lightning about a second after. It's easy enough to avoid, but between claps of thunder you hear Sonic yell something, is he ok?

 _*Frisk! Watch ou-_ a knife strikes the textbox, bringing Frisk's attention back onto Chara. They seem to be at their limit, the red heart on their chest glowed bright as they acted outside of their turn and lightning bolts began to rain down all over the arena. You had no idea this was possible, how can they force themself to attack during your turn? Is this... Determination?

D-damnit! There's no choice! You FLEE, the box falling away as a lightning bolt grazes your arm. It struck your physical body, not your soul, so you aren't instantly dead.

Hurts like a bitch, though.

You cry out in pain, stumbling backwards, Chara looks almost worried for a second, before catching themselves. 

Can't be having that.

Sonic looks over, distracted for a second - and in that second the now mostly naked skeleton of the mutated Doctor takes it's chance, one of the sharper pieces of it's physical body jumps up and stabs Sonic in the gut, causing him to double over. Chara looks indifferently towards the sight, refocusing on Frisk.

*You shout towards Sonic, his eyes have shrunk to pinpricks and he's on his knees. 

Chara bends down, grabbing your face and forcing you to look at them. *"Stop it. Let's just get this over with." 

*You struggle, almost ready to cry as Chara holds you in place. They produce a knife with their magic, raising it up above their head.

*"A SOUL for a SOUL, simple equivalent exchange... You understand, don't you Frisk? You're helping me."

*"What's just one timeline, to people like us? Just once, Frisk, let me win just once."

 *You tell Chara they've killed you once before, they close their eyes, still smiling.

*"I know."

Blood covers red shards of crystal as it drips onto the floor.

 

...

*TIKAL... Are you there..?

*Please, give me strength, let me stay determined like you...

*You're all I've got left..!

 

You're back, pinned under Chara with a knife dangling over your head.

*"What's just one timeline, to people like us? Just once, Frisk, let me win just once."

*You tell Chara they've killed you twice before, they let out a small chuckle.

*"So I suppose I can't get you with that one again, hm? I thought maybe your power wasn't so refined, what with that odd gem stuck in your SOUL..."

*"I should've known, really."

You struggle under Chara's weight, but their metal body is just too heavy to move. They know everything you're going to do, apparently, so think! What's Chara going to do next? You close your eyes and concentrate.

*"That's... New."

*"Just accepting it, hm? I say it's new, but you've done it before, once upon a time."

*"It makes my job a lot easier, thank you, dear partner." Chara readies the knife once again, but as they bring it down your eyes suddenly open as you jolt your head to the side, causing the knife to simply bounce off the hard floor."

*"Wait, wh-" Metal footsteps cut Chara off, before a red blur smashes into them and knocks them away! You scramble to your feet, seeing Knuckles pressing his foot into Chara's chest hard, glaring daggers into their eyes. Never before in your life have you been so happy to see an echidna in a cowboy hat!

"Jeez, I leave five minutes late... Frisk! Give these to Sonic!" Knuckles tossed a couple of glowing rings, which you catch before running over to the bleeding blue blur.

* * *

 

 

Your name is not important. Well, it is, but not right now. 

You're currently observing the results of your intervention, is it divine? In power, perhaps. In terms of the reason, however... Well, you've never come across a god who had to learn about his mortals. 

W.D Gaster was an interesting find of yours, and he was a formidable foe indeed. Looking over your little rusted artifact, you see Chara's image wavering in the rainbow swirling of light. Curious... Could it be they were soon to leave you? They were doing so well, too. The little human who looks so much like your Chara is tending to the wounds of that Sonic; What should you call it- W.D Eggman, perhaps? Whatever it is, the remains of the creature are starting to lose their grip on reality as the beast runs out of energy. This  _is_ a predicament. 

The hedgehog appears to be... Mourning? He's looking at the pieces of it's face with anguish... You've never seen a world in which Sonic and Eggman got along, this is very good! You've learned something today, and that human... This would mean all those with the colour red can distort time? You counted two resets so far, that's two SOULs to pick up from the Charas left behind in those timelines. Speaking of...

You turn around, reaching out and pulling yourself into one of the timelines left abandoned by the other human; Frisk, if you recall. Chara is holding the shards of the SOUL in one hand, and... Frisk's hand in the other? They look upset. Noted. Chara still holds affections for 'Frisk', platonic or otherwise. It shouldn't impede things, they did what they had to in spite of their feelings- you find that respectable in a child such as them. You'll come back for that SOUL's repairing later, you don't like to linger in Doomed Timelines.

Let's see here... Back in the Alpha Timeline, you see that Sonic is getting back to his feet, and Chara has freed themself from Knuckles. Noted. Chara's Prelate body enhances their physical strength. Noted. You twirl the golden arrow in your fingers, looking between the people in the room... Another time, you think. The arrow falls away into storage with the rest of the artifacts, you've been meaning to test it out since you retrieved it from that Mephiles a while ago.

Wait, pardon? Knuckles has been knocked away, Chara appears to be screaming. Frisk also screams. Noted. 

Let's take a closer look...

* * *

 

 

Your name is Frisk, and you are absolutely furious.

Knuckles gets up and dusts himself off while you stare Chara down, they look between you, Knuckles and the healing Sonic. Power Rings are a hell of a drug, but tedious to collect apparently. They back up a bit, bumping into the control panel in front of the smashed containment pod their body was stored in before.

*You tell Chara that you won't let them hurt anyone else. By tell, I mean yell.

*"Frisk, you really don't understand! He'll be back soon, and I doubt he'd be happy with just two SOULs! I lied to you, I'm sure you figured that out, he needs as much power as he can get!"

*WHO!?

*"H-He's..."

Knuckles shakes his head, "Forget this! Let's just end it!" He leaps at Chara with fists readied, but Chara, fear in their voice, just keeps speaking.

*"He's already here."

The sound of a shattering mirror is heard, Knuckles freezes midair for a few seconds before being flung away, holding his pose and simply passing through the far wall.

W-what!?

Chara, despite being in a metallic body, seems to shiver. In front of them stands a creature unlike you've ever seen, with eyes that stare deep into your SOUL. It looks over it's shoulder to Chara.

"Two, hm? That's more than zero, well done."

*"T-thank you..."

He seems to twitch, turning around fully, kneeling down and putting his hands on Chara's face. 

"Now... Why are you shivering? You were so fearless a moment ago, don't tell me you're still scared?" Chara winces. The strange being gives off an air of madness, it seems as if he'll snap any moment. Things have changed, that thing is distracted! 

You concentrate, remembering this moment to return to. 

Time to do something stupid!

You rush towards the mysterious creature, intending on charging alone but seeing Sonic rushing beside you! Shooting him a look, he turns to you and nods, extending a hand.

"Come on, we can smack him away and get outta here together!" He smiles, you smile back, reaching down and grabbing something off the floor as you keep pace with Sonic. The mysterious being turns around and stares with one creepy, red and green eye.

"Here it comes!" Sonic yells triumphantly.

 **"DOUBLE BOOST!"** You high five Sonic without slowing down, the two of you being surrounded in a powerful aura as you barrel towards that creep! You don't feel the impact against him, but you do feel the impact against the containment pod as it smashes apart and the impact against Chara that knocks them to the ground. You whip around as the aura fades, producing the object you picked up off the floor: Eggman's ray gun! The mad creature turned again from where he floats ominously out of the Double Boost's trajectory; he simply stares at the green blast coming towards him, even as it breaks the laws of reality and bends all the way round his body before becoming naught but another scorch mark in the far wall's collection.

"Curious, you-"

"KNOCK KNOCK IT'S KNU-OH FUCK" Knuckles jumped in through the door heroically, trying to land a punch on the floating menace but merely bending around him as the laser did, landing square on his face.

"U-uh, I meant to do that!" He scrambled back towards yourself, Sonic and Chara; his eyes remained trained on the adversary before you all.

"...As I was saying."

"It is curious how just a moment ago you were ready to fight my Chara, but now... What's this I smell?"

"You're looking awfully protective there, are you planning a kidnapping? I thought you were supposed to be a hero, now."

*You tell the creepy guy to go away, but like, with a swear word.

"How rude."

As you have your spat, Knuckles leaned back into Sonic, close enough for him to feel the presence of a little trinket he'd had hidden up until now. Sonic smirked, patting Knuckle on the shoulder and taking the prize from beneath his hat discreetly.

"You there, what are you doing? Was that supposed to be discreet?" Sonic's cheeks and ears go a bit red at the otherwordly being's question, Knuckles facepalms. 

"Nah, just scratching my buddy Knuckles' head here! He has dandruff." Knuckles looks at Sonic like he's a total weirdo.

"Say, you gotta name for us? Someone strong like you, I'm surprised we've never been acquainted!" You wonder just what the hell Sonic is doing before you see what's in his hand, hidden behind Knuckles who's still sitting down: A Chaos Emerald!

 "You may call me Infinite, in the brief moments we have left together." Infinite, that's much better than calling him a 'being' again.

"Great! We're learning so much about eachother, do you-" Infinite raises a hand, silencing Sonic.

"Are you going to teleport away or aren't you? Don't think I can't sense that Emerald."

...

.....

Shit.

"I've already looked, Chara, and it seems this is where we part ways..."

"But don't fret, dear. I'll be back for you."

"This is simply how time shall progress."

Chara looks around frantically between you, Sonic and Knuckles; they don't appear to believe what's happening.

"Sonic, let's just go!" Knuckles scrambes to his feet and grabs Sonic's shoulder, Sonic grabs your arm with his free hand and raises the Emerald up. Right before the ability activates, you extend your hand to Chara, who looks at it for just a moment with a look of confusion and sadness. Despite this, they do relent.

They knew exactly what you were going to do, after all.

**"Chaos... CONTROL!"**

As the flash of light fades, Infinite's feet touch the ground and he pulls out a rusted old gadget of some description. Within the swirling light, he sees the image of the Emerald Hill. It appears he's found his next destination.


End file.
